Lot or bundle assorter for ironing machines



Sept. 26, 1933. F. .1. coucH LOT OR BUNDLE ASSORTER FOR IRONING MACHINES Filed Nov. 3, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 (ova/r INVEN OR Sept. 26, 1933. F J CQUCH 1,928,348

LOT OR BUNDLE ASSORTER FOR IRONING MACHINES Filed Nov. 3, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 TRY Patented Sept. 26, 1933 PATENT orrlce LOT OR BUNDLE ASSORTER FOR IRONING MACHINES Forrest J. Couch,

Cincinnati, Ohio, assignor to The American Laundry Machinery Company,

Cincinnati, Ohio,

a corporation of Ohio Application November 3, 1930. Serial No. 493,050

4 Claims.

My invention relates to a lot or bundle assorter for ironing machines and, particularly, to alot or bundle assorter for ironing machines or the like where the goods are ironed automatically and continuously delivered to a certain point.

The invention is especially applicable to ironing machines and is particularly advantageous where the family bundle service ironing is employed and wherein it is desirable to keep each family bundle of goods separated from others, to have each family bundle of goods placed in a difierent receptacle or compartment, and to eliminate the labor necessary to remove filled receptacles from the point of delivery and substitute empty receptacles therefor manually. My invention contemplates the provision of a conveying mechanism embodying an endless chain carrying a series of compartments and having operating mechanism so controlled and synchronized that each separate compartment carried by the chain will automatically be moved to a point of delivery and will remain stationary at the point of delivery a sufiicient length of time to collect one familys bundle or lot of goods.

The objects of my invention are to provide a means for keeping each customers lot of goods separated from others; to provide an endless row of compartments so arranged that each customers lot of goods may be delivered in a single compartment; and to provide an operating mechanism such that each compartment may be stopped at the delivery point a sufficient length of time to receive all of one customers goods and may then be moved onwardly and another compartment brought into registry with the delivery point, the operating apparatus being such that the compartments may be stopped or moved, as required.

Various other objects and advantageous features of my invention may be seen in the following description and one embodiment thereof may be seen in the accompanying drawings wherein similar characters of reference designate corresponding parts, and wherein:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a delivery conveyor constructed in accordance with my invention; Fig. 2 is a plan view of the delivery conveyor shown in Fig. 1; Fig.3 is a side elevation of the operating means for the delivery conveyor shown in Fig; 1, but without the parts thereof in operative connection; and Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the relatively thick pad used for mechanism tripping purposes. 1 v Referring to the drawings, an ironing roll 1 is shown in cooperative relation with an ironing chest 2, the roll andchest being of the usual type found in a flat work machine. Also, as is usual in ironing machines, a tape 3 passes around the ironing roll and between the roll and chest.

In accordance with my invention, a bracket 4 is rigidly'secured to each side of the rearwardmost end of the chest 2 and each bracket is provided with an upwardly extending ear 5 towhich an arm 6 is pivoted as at '7. This arm carries the usual stripper roller 8 intermediate its ends and closer to its outermost end, the stripper roller being mounted on a shaft 9 journalled in the arms, and a roller 10 intermediate the stripper roller 8 and the pivot point '7. One end of the roller rests on or near the rear end of the chest 2 by gravity and the other end is held downwardly by means of a sprocket chain 11 traveling around a' sprocket 12 on the shaft 13 which carries the roller 10 and driven sprocket 14 which causes rotation of the roller 10. With this construction, the ironed goods passes under the roller 10 and then falls away from the rearwardmost end of the chest 2 or, if necessary, is stripped from the tape 3 by the stripper roller 8.

A conveyor mechanism and operating means therefor, is mounted on a frame 15 and disposed adjacent the delivery end of the chest 2 and comprises an endless conveyor chain 16 that may be of chain or otherwise that travels about a driven sprocket 17, over an idler sprocket 18 and around an idler sprocket 19, returning back to and around the driven sprocket 17. One end of the endless conveyor 16 is disposed'directly below the roller 10 whereby all goods delivered from the ironing machine will fall directly on the conveyorand the position of the conveyor between the idler sprockets 18 v.and 19 is substantially horizontal while the remainder of the conveyor is disposed at an angle to the horizontal. The horizontal position or" the conveyor is supported at a convenient height by means of suitable guides which may be of angle iron and the conveyor may extend horizontally away from the ironing machine as far as is desired.

In itself, the conveyor of which the chain 16 1 forms a part consists of a plurality of compartments separated by vertical partitions 21. Also, in viewing the horizontal position of the con-, veyor, the bottom of each compartment formed by the vertical partitions 21 consists of several 105 substantially rectangularly shaped plates 22 each having one edge pivotally connected to the endless chain 16. Each vertical partition 21 is preferably made integral with the plate 22 which'is adjacent thereto and there is a substantially no greater number of plates 22 than partitions 21 whereby a number of compartments may be formed throughout the length of the conveyor. However, it will be understood that the number of compartments or the size the eof may be varied by difierent spacings of the plates 22 carrying the partitions 21. r

The apparatus is so constructed and the travel of the conveyor is driven and idler sprockets that the plates 22 will lie in a position of overlapping relation in the same general longitudinal line as .the conveyor chain along that portion ofthe chain that is above the driven and idler sprockets. It follows that, since the plates 22 are pivoted on the conveyor chain, the plates will tend to swing to a substantially vertical position with the partitions 21 disposed substantially horizontally when the portion of the conveyor above the driven and idler sprockets travels therearound to a position beneath the sprockets or, in other words, reaches the return lap, the plates and partitions tending to swing to their respective positions just mentioned by force of gravity. Supporting tracks 23 are provided along which the free edges of the plates slide during the return lap of the conveyor and such tracks diverge outwardly from the conveyor chain 16 as it approaches a position belowthe shaft 24 on which the driven sprocket 17 is mounted whereby the free edges of the plates 22 and the partitions 21 are entirely free from the tracks so that they may follow the chain lfi around the sprocket 17 without binding.

each plate 22 or partition 21 as the center of gravity passes the vertical plane of the center of the idlers 19. In Fig. 2, it will be noted that the partitions 21 are cut back as at 21' to be shorter than the plates 22 whereby they will move freely between the tracks 23 while the ends of the plates 22 from which the partitions extend ride on the tracks. v

With this arrangement, when a plate 22 with its partition 21 reaches the point where it is just beginning to move around the sprocket 19, the ends of the plates engage the lower side of the curved portions 25 of the tracks while the partitions 21' pass between the tracks. The curvature 25 of the tracks is so developed that the tracks do not bind the plates 22 at any point in their movement around the sprocket 19 but allow the plates to follow naturally around with the exception that their outer shown, the tracks 23 below the conveyor are so The'size of the sprocket wheels l'lmounted on the shaft 24 about which the endless chains '16 pass is such that one revolution of the sprockets will cause the conveyor mechanism of which the size of the sprockets 17 must be changed when the size of the compartments is changed by varying the distance between the partitions 21 in order to obtain the in such direction about the edge is held back. Asv

chine and the plates 22 will gra proper synchronism of movement of the compartments. The partitions 21 are all equally spaced apart and the size of the sprocket 17 is such that a compartment formed between two partitions will always be positioned directly below the rear edge of the chest 2 each time the conveyor comes to a stop.

In order to control the operation of the conveyor, a trip 26 is provided that takes the form of a bell crank lever. having a long and a short arm, the trip being pivotally mounted as at 27 on a disk 28 which is rigidly mounted on the shaft 24. Loosely mounted on the shaft 24 a short distance from the disk 28 is another disk 29 which is provided with four pins or lugs 30 projecting from itsface towards the disk 28 and into the same vertical plane as the short arm of the trip 26 occupies. The trip 26 is limited in its movement about the pivot 27. in one direction by a stop pin 31 and in the other direction by a stop pin 32. A spring 33 normally'tends to hold'the trip 26 in a position with the long arm thereof against the stop 32 and with the short arm of the trip in a raised position whereby it will be in the arcuate path of travel of the pins 30.

The disk 29 is constantly rotated or driven clockwise as will be hereinafter described and, being loosely mounted on the shaft 24, with the trip 26 on the disk 28 which'is rigidly mounted on the shaft 24 in such position that the short thereof will not contact with any of the pins, the shaft 24 and sprockets 17 will not be rotated and the conveyor will remain stationary.

' To provide a means for moving the trip 26 to such position that the short arm thereof will be raisedvinto the path of travel of the pins 30, an arm 34 is pivotally mounted on the frame of the conveyor as at 35 and has its free end arranged to be in either of two positions, namely, in the path of the long arm of the trip 26 as shown in Fig. 1 wherein the short arm of the trip will be moved out of the path of travel of the pins 30 and the trip, held against the stop 31, or out of the path of the long'arm of the trip 26, see Fig. 3, and in such position that the trip will be moved against the stop 32 by spring 33, which movement will cause the short arm of the trip to be moved upward into the path of travel of the pins 30. As is clearly shown in the drawings, the free end of the arm 34 is made to swing in a vertical plane out of and into the path of the trip 26 which moves with the disk 28. The free end of the arm 34 is connected by a link 36 to the free extending end of one of the arms 6 mounted on the bracket 4 as hereinbefore described whereby when such arm 6 is raised the arm 34 will be raised and the free end lifted out of the path of the long arm or the trip 26 to permit the trip to be swung to the position hereinbefore described by means of the spring 33 and thereby bring the short arm of the tripinto the circular path of the pins 30.

The disk 29 is constantly rotated in a clockwise direction which will move the upper lap of the conveyor to the right as shown in Fig. 1 and the lower end thereof to the left so that the partitions 21 will be brought to vertical position immedelivery end of the ironing mavitate into the overlapping position shown in Fig. 1 on the upper lap of the conveyor. Such disk 29 is constantly rotated by means of a gear wheel 37 integral with the disk and meshing with a gear 38 integral with the ironing machine and provided with a chain tightener consisting of an arm 42, roller 43, and spring 44. It will be understood that, if desired, a separate motor may be employed for constantly rotating the disk 29.

As a safety device, or to provide a means for starting travel of the conveyor at any time, a lifting button 45 is provided at a convenient location which is connectd to the arm 34 by means of a link 46, the connection to the arm 34 being on such side of the pivot that raising of the button 45 will move the free end of the arm 34 upwardly and disengage the free end thereof from the long arm of the trip 26 whereby the short arm of the trip will move into the path of travel of the pins 30. f

In the operation of this device, the ironed goods fall from the delivery end of the steam chest into the compartment of the conveyor which is at rest directly below such delivery point and when the last piece of a customers goods has been fed into the feed end of the ironing machine the operator follows it immediately with a relatively thick pad a which passes through the ironer and under the. roll 10 whereby such roller will be lifted slightly to cause the extended free end of the lever 9 to which the link 36 is connected to be moved upwardly about the pivot '7 a sufficient distance to release the trip 26 by moving the arm'34 upwardly and out of engagement therewith whereby the short arm of the trip will move into the path of travel of the pins 30 as hereinbefore described. This will cause one complete revolution of the sprockets '17 around which the conveyor passes and movement of the filled compartment out of registry with the delivery point and the next adjacent empty compartment into registry therewith. Goods may be removed from the compartments when they reach the horizontal position shown in Fig. 1. The thick pad is of such width that it will pass entirely out from under the ironing machine roll 10 whereby the arm 34 may again drop downwardly into a position to engage the long arm of the trip 26 prior to the disk 28 making one complete revolution whereby the long end of the trip will engage the free end of the arm 34 and the short arm of the trip moved out of the path of the pins 30 as hereinbefore described. To guard against any pieces of goods falling to either side of the conveyor when they fall by gravity from the delivery end of the tical side pieces 4'7 are secured to the conveyor frame on each side of the conveyor.

Referring to the drawings and the precedingdescription, it will be seen that Ihave provided an apparatus of the above type embodying numerous novel and advantageous, features. For instance, I have provided a delivery conveyor wherein bundles of clothes that are maintained in separated relation from other bundles during previous laundry operations may be ironed and collected in separate compartments and thus be maintained in their respective bundles whereby chest 2, substantially 'vercenters, and trip mechanism the necessity of again separating the clothes after the ironing operation is done away with. Another feature resides in the fact that the conveyor is so constructed as to present successive empty compartments at the delivery point of the ironing machine and removing filled compartments automatically and without the use of manual labor. Various other features will be readily apparent.

What I claim is:'

1,. In combination with an ironing machine including roll and chest members, an article conveyor comprising a conveying element positioned to receive articles discharged from the ironing machine and having successive compartments thereon, means for advancing said conveying element a step the span of one compartment, and trip mechanism for causing such conveying element advance, whereby each compartment may receive articles of an individual group.

2. In combination with an ironing machine including roll and chest members, an article conveyor comprising a conveying element positioned to receive articles discharged from the ironing machine and having successive compartments thereon, means for advancing said conveying element a step the span of one compartment, and trip mechanism adjacent the delivery end of the ironing machine and actuated by a device other than work being ironed passed through said ironing machine for causing such conveying element advance, whereby each compartment may receive articles of an individual group.

3. In combination with an ironing machine including roll and chest members, an article conveyor comprising a conveying element positioned to receive articles discharged from the ironing machine and having compartments thereon, means for advancing said conveying element a step the span between successive compartment 115 centers, and trip mechanism for causing such conveying element advance including a movable member for actuating the trip disposed adjacent the delivery end of said ironing machine and under which the ironed work passes.

4. In combination with an ironing machine including roll and chest members, an article conveyor comprising a conveying element positioned to receive articles discharged from the ironing machine and having compartments thereon,

'means for advancing said conveying element a step the span between successive compartment for causing such conveying element advance including a movable member for actuating the trip disposed adjacent the delivery end of said ironing machine and under which the ironed work passes, said member being arranged whereby its movement under the influence of work of normal thickness passing thereunder W111 be ineffective to actuate said trip but efiective when a device greater in thickness than the work passes thereunder.

' FORREST J. COUCH. 

